As CPS faces an almost $1 billion budget deficit, WITS continues to be the only in-school reading mentorship program that is free for CPS schools and families.
WITS was founded on a simple request from one teacher in Cabrini Green in 1991. She told the two volunteers that showed up at her school one day how they could help. She said, “I just need you to read with my students.”
In 34 years, that need has not changed and neither has the grade-level reading attainment for most CPS students, most recently coming in at 31% across the entire district. For the schools that WITS serves in its student mentorship programs, that number is 27%. According to 2024 SAT scores, only 22% of CPS 11th grade students were reading at the appropriate grade level. These persistent numbers are coupled with growing CPS budget issues that will immediately affect schools this fall. The $734 million deficit has already led to thousands of eliminated positions, notably discontinuing the elementary reading/literacy tutor program that was funded through the expiring CARES Act.
The $734 million deficit has already led to thousands of eliminated positions, notably discontinuing the elementary reading/literacy tutor program…
Principals have opened their doors despite ambiguity around staffing levels and how they will provide extracurricular programming for their students. The CPS Board must pass the proposed budget on August 28 to prevent a lapse in learning.
It is hard to reconcile how our City and State can provide our students with an adequate education when the numbers presented above seem insurmountable.
Why should we hope for anything less of our world-class city, the third largest in the United States with the fourth largest school district?
Schools deserve access to opportunities that are free
WITS believes that literacy is the foundation on which all other learning develops. Furthermore, we believe it is foundational to being a thoughtful and well-rounded human. WITS has been partnering with corporations and organizations for three decades to ensure our program delivery is not reliant on school or city budgets. This gives schools the consistency they need to reach literacy standards at no-cost to them. WITS programs double the number of students reaching grade-level proficiency in one year compared to the CPS average.
WITS programs double the number of students reaching grade-level proficiency in one year compared to the CPS average.
I recently spoke to the Principal of Graham Elementary School, Deivi Aguilar. She was formerly an administrator at two schools that have activated multiple WITS programs for years. Her high-need school that serves Bridgeport, Canaryville, and Fuller Park has no consistent education enrichment programs, and she spends $50,000/year to provide one-off events for her school community.
Aguilar said, “WITS would be transformational for our school. It is particularly important for my community to be exposed to other opportunities, people, and parts of the city.” 87% of WITS schools say increased social-emotional development is the most impactful aspect of our program.
“WITS shows them more than what is out their front door.” – Deivi Aguilar, Principal of Graham Elementary School
In planning an eighth-grade graduation event, she discovered that the vast majority of her students had never been downtown. She added, “WITS shows them more than what is out their front door.”
To achieve meaningful results in our city, more students need access to our evidence-based, proven programming. As we head into the uncertainty of the next year, schools need no-cost, consistent opportunities for their students. We need thousands of students to have access to WITS instead of hundreds.
As we head into the uncertainty of the next year, schools need no-cost, consistent opportunities for their students.
Consistency and growth
WITS provides hundreds of individuals and dozens of corporations with the opportunity to be a meaningful and productive part of the solution. 65% of WITS partner corporations have been providing necessary weekly literacy enrichment to schools for over a decade. We want to be able to provide our proven programming to thousands of students instead of hundreds.
WITS has partnered with all its mentorship schools, always at no cost to them, for over 10 years.
In a situation that is riddled with barriers and few long-term solutions, WITS has given schools what they need most – consistent, caring, engaging opportunities for their students to develop, strive, and achieve. WITS has partnered with all its mentorship schools, always at no cost to them, for over 10 years.
Donate and support the only free in-school year-long reading mentorship program in CPS elementary schools. Your support gives us the opportunity to leverage our positive results and expand corporate partnerships to meet the growing need for WITS programming in CPS.
